


temporary cure for pride and affectation

by sturms_sun_shattered



Category: Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity (Video Game), The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Genre: Combat, Humor, Injury, Kind of dark, M/M, No Spoilers, Vomiting, bird behaviour, crackfic played straight, i've been told this is funny, nothing graphic, revali argues with himself, tiny bit cursed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-28
Updated: 2020-11-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:27:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 923
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27748252
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sturms_sun_shattered/pseuds/sturms_sun_shattered
Summary: Concussed, Revali lies in the battlefield and stews over Link's glory-stealing.
Relationships: Link/Revali (Legend of Zelda)
Comments: 23
Kudos: 139





	temporary cure for pride and affectation

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to [DrSteggy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DrSteggy) for sharing that some birds (such as parrots) will vomit on their owners as a sign they _like_ them, and [DeathByStorm](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeathByStorm) for taking that and running with it in a Revalink direction. This was too much on my mind _not_ to write it.
> 
> Thanks to my beta readers [acacias](https://archiveofourown.org/users/acacias) and DeathByStorm for making this little fic perfection ♥
> 
> Title from quote: One of the best temporary cures for pride and affectation is seasickness; a man who wants to vomit never puts on airs - Josh Billings

Goddess, he hoped Mipha would be the one to find him.

The sun blazed down on Revali’s dark feathers, the intolerable heat threatening to drown him nearly as much the discomfort of it forced him into wakefulness. He lay splayed in the grass, the clash of battle a distant clangour of steel and shouts and the sickening sound of death. It was the sound that seemed to scream through his senses all through the day and howl in the background of his dreams those few hours he slept at night.

As Revali clenched his eyes against the obscene brightness of the warring world, he choked on the scoff that welled up in his throat at the memory of that up-jumped Hylian knight stealing his victory over the lynel. Revali had harassed the beast with flurry after flurry of arrows, wearing down the stubborn creature even as his body begged for rest. It was the blur of that royal blue tunic that had undone him, distracted him for the brief second that it took the lynel to swat him from the air with its crusher, sending him flying through the felled trees to rest in the grass. And then, as though his entire existence were ordained by the Goddess merely to spite Revali, Link had raced in from nowhere to defeat the lynel.

There was no time to waste—they still had so much left to do and soldiers fell every step of the way. Perhaps he could make it to Mipha on his own and she could mend him enough that he could fight on. Steeling himself, Revali took a deep breath and attempted to drag himself to his feet. The world spinning around him, he only made it to his knees before he wondered if this was where death would take him.

Revali held his screaming head and felt the stickiness of drying blood catch in his feathers—he hoped it wasn’t his. While others might give in to such a minor inconvenience as a head wound, he was among the finest warriors the Rito had ever known, and could allow himself no such luxuries. But, as he attempted to rise, he recovered neither his balance nor the strength to stand. At the sound of a cleared throat he looked up to see that expanse of royal blue standing before him once more.

Revali peered up through his primaries, relief—no, _annoyance_ —flaring in his chest at the sight of Link. Seeing Link’s stare, Revali lowered his wings in an effort to mask his injuries, but he had no doubt that even a Hylian would notice his feathers fluffed in distress.

“How convenient of you to steal my kill and then come to gloat,” Revali said, his voice torn raw from shouting over battle. “Shouldn’t you be by the Princess’s side?”

As ever, Link said nothing—infuriating Revali even in his miserable state—and slid his hand beneath Revali’s upper wing to urge him to his feet.

“I don’t need _your_ help,” Revali told him, yanking his wing sharply from Link’s grasp.

With a supreme effort, Revali forced himself to stand, black spots dancing in his vision as he reached his full height. He was not about to pass out in front of this stoic knight, his face filled with nothing but understanding—it was pathetic! Revali didn’t need Link’s sympathies, he needed a healer so he could return to battle.

“Where’s Mipha?” Revali managed through his clenched beak.

Link pointed out the battle, where the crackle of lightning levelled hordes of beasts and grace washed them away. One step in that direction and Revali nearly stumbled, the green field tilting around him. 

Revali’s breath left him in a shaky huff as Link caught him, one arm around his back, one hand over his rapidly thrumming heart. As Link drew Revali’s wing over his shoulders, Revali found himself unable to protest. The shoulders beneath the sweat-drenched fabric of Link’s tunic were as well-muscled as any Rito’s, though Revali dismissed his mind traversing that road unbidden as a consequence of the throbbing pain in his head.

“You must be enjoying this,” Revali taunted.

Link shrugged those firm shoulders as he urged Revali on through the field. The glare from the sun off those less and less distant swords and shields hit Revali’s eyes and rebounded inside of his skull. He shielded his eyes with his wing—he could hold on until they reached Mipha. He had certainly suffered worse than this in his life.

The hand which held his wing across Link’s shoulders squeezed tightly—a gesture of support, no doubt, but one that Revali was in no need of. He turned his head, prepared to admonish the insufferable knight, when everything inside of him clenched at the sight of Link. In his dizzy haze, Revali was sick down the front of that blasted royal blue tunic.

“Don’t read too closely into that,” Revali protested, praying he might somehow save face; he was, after all, injured.

Stopped in his tracks, Link looked surprised, but not nearly so horrified as Revali would have expected as he stared down at the stain on his tunic. He looked up at Revali, an unusual half-smile crossing his face as he huffed a laugh.

Revali’s face burned beneath his feathers—so Link _did_ think it was like that. As the knight pulled him a little closer and forced them on toward Mipha, Revali felt he needed to make one thing clear.

“This doesn’t mean that I like you.”

**Author's Note:**

> Was it the concussion? Who can say?
> 
> Thanks for reading ♥


End file.
